1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a reproducing apparatus suitably usable in various types of video and audio players, video recorders, etc., and more particularly to a reproducing apparatus adapted to process an image for fade-in and -out, etc.
2. Description of Related Art
In motion pictures, TV programs, etc., imaging techniques such as fade-in or -out of video and audio signals are often used when a person appears in or leaves a scene. Also, when a scene is changed to another, a video signal is very often processed for cross-fade.
Explanation will be made of an image or video signal, for example, the "fade-in" is a technique or signal processing by which an image not visible is made to appear little by little, and the "fade-out" is a technique by which a currently visible image is made to gradually disappear. Image fade-in can be attained by raising the level of a video signal gradually up to a predetermined level, while fade-out can be attained by gradually lowering the video signal level and finally down to zero.
Further, the "cross-fade" is a technique by which a currently visible image is made to gradually disappear while another image is composed little by little and finally only this composed image is displayed. For example, one video signal is gradually lowered in level while another video signal is raised in level little by little and finally the latter video signal is delivered as an output.
Recording media such as cassette tapes, discs, etc. have recorded therein video and audio signals edited for fade-in, fade-out or cross-fade. When it is necessary to re-edit the video and audio signals recorded as so edited in such medium, it is not possible to restore the video signal once edited for fade-in or the like, etc. to its original state, which is very convenient. In other words, for re-edition of a video signal or the like in a recording medium to change a position at which the signal is to be processed for fade-in or otherwise, an edited video signal has to be written over an existing video signal or the like in a recording medium since the existing signal cannot be used. This is very disadvantageous in trying to edit the video signal many times.